U.S. Chinook helicopter (file photo) (AFP)
16 January 2006 -- The U.S. military reported that one of its helicopters crashed north of Baghdad today but said there was no immediate news of the fate of the two-man crew.

Reuters quoted witnesses as saying the helicopter was hit by a rocket near the town of Mishahda. U.S. officials have not confirmed that version of events.

Two little-known Iraqi insurgent groups, the Mujahedin Army and the Salaheddin al-Ayubi Brigades, separately claimed to have brought the helicopter down. The authenticity of the statements could not be verified.

In another development, U.S. soldiers shot and killed one woman and wounded three other people who were seated in a car that failed to stop at a checkpoint in north Iraq despite repeated warnings.